Creating and Sustaining Robust Principal Pipelines: Impact Matters
December 18, 2024
Impact matters and few have more impact on improving student outcomes and strengthening school culture than school principals. Effective principals are second only to quality classroom instruction as it relates to improving student learning. For that reason, developing and sustaining a strong principal and leader pipeline is a must. When done strategically, this has far-reaching implications for robust continuous improvement. Whether a district is suffering from a talent deficit or not, a principal and leader pipeline will be of benefit.
"Effective principals are second only to quality classroom instruction as it relates to improving student learning."
Getting Started
Before executing and delivering on a principal pipeline, leaders must consider the basics such as budget and marketing plan, both of which should be aligned with the district’s strategic plan. While serving as superintendent of Selma City Schools in Selma, AL, I led this process. Although modeled after a structure that was embedded in Atlanta Public Schools, Selma was much smaller and had different needs and resources. This meant that we had to work within a tight budget. Still, creating a principal and leader pipeline was a school board priority. Therefore, with board support, we reworked our federal and local budget to add appropriate professional learning, stipends and short-term contracts. When budgets are aligned with priorities, districts are better positioned for improved outcomes.
In addition to adapting the budget, we also added the pipeline work to our district’s marketing plan. The idea was to ensure that all teachers, staff and aspiring leaders had enough information to decide if the Aspiring Leaders Academy was for them. Current principals and members of school leadership teams were instrumental in developing and sharing our marketing campaign. This included having an application process and clear timelines along with an FAQ document.
"A strategic plan creates the roadmap for district success."
Strategic Plan Alignment
I am a firm believer that a strategic plan creates the roadmap for district success. Further, that plan should be viewed as a living, breathing document so that updates are made as needs shift. This was the case in Selma. Our strategic plan was strong and included goals and key performance indicators related to leadership development. However, we needed more clarity and depth to include leadership standards/expectations, updated selection and hiring practices, job-embedded supports aligned with the state evaluation and the inclusion of principal supervisors. Strategic plan alignment is a necessary step to support sustainability.
Personalized Approach for Adult Learners
Once the budget was established, the marketing plan completed and the strategic plan appropriately revised, it was important to ensure that our Aspiring Leaders Academy was personalized and designed to support adult learners and engage the participants. There are many tools to assess communication and leadership styles, and I suggest reviewing and selecting one that meets district needs and expected outcomes. Using this approach enables the academy to be relevant and appropriately challenging.
Strategic plan alignment is a necessary step to support sustainability.
Other suggestions include:
Incorporating a capstone project to encourage participants to address a real district or school issue
Offering job-shadowing to provide more exposure
Pairing aspiring leaders with mentors to provide support and feedback
Offering flexible scheduling or a hybrid learning experience to accommodate participants’ professional and personal obligations
Including self-awareness and reflection tools that give 360-degree feedback and coaching
Sustainability – cohort model, grow your own, district/school shared responsibility. Once established, district leaders must plan for sustainability. Providing post-program support through alumni networks and ongoing professional learning helped us do this in Selma. Also, our human resources team created pathways for leadership roles within the district so that succession planning was in place.
Finally, we had a commitment to excellence and continuous improvement and the Aspiring Leaders Academy thrived as a result. When I exited the role of superintendent in Selma, 70% of our principals and instructional leaders were alumni or mentors of the Academy. Our state report card increased by 8 points and a full letter grade. Graduation rates and reading scores increased by 6% and math scores by 8%. Impact matters.
Dr. Avis Williams served as superintendent of Selma City Schools for five years and New Orleans Public Schools for 2.5 years. She is the CEO of The Joyful Collaborative, LLC.
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Additional Resources
This resource was published as part of the Wallace Foundation Research on Leadership Development and Learning Toolkit. Learn more.
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